S&L Podcast - #539 - Floss, Floss, Floss!

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Cucamelons, short lists, long lists, Tom sings Le Sserafim, and we talk about books that changed our view of the world. Plus, what book would you want to portal into? Our first non-spoilery first impressions of This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews.

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WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

  • Tom: Chicken Yakisoba

  • Veronica: Cucamelons!

QUICK BURNS

Jan: The Booker Prize longlist for 2026 has been announced and includes The End of Everything by genre icon M. John Harrison (Viriconium).

The Booker Prize website loglines the novel as:

"A slyly satirical and unsettling post-apocalyptic adventure into the limits of human understanding from the acknowledged master of science fiction."

Other entries that could be considered genre-related:

  • The Renovation by Kenan Orhan (I mean, builders installing a door to a Turkish prison cell instead of a new bathroom sure does sound a bit fantastical).

  • The Vivisectors by Missouri Williams (apparently set in a "crumbling university city overrun by vegetation, where power is held in a fragile balance between the academics and a contingent of rogue gardeners").

But hey! Maybe there are more—so head on over to the Booker Prize website and find out.

Chris K: Via Locus: 2026 World Fantasy Awards Finalists The World Fantasy Awards ballot for works published in 2025 has been announced. The awards will be presented during the 2026 World Fantasy Convention, scheduled for October 22-25, 2026 in Oakland, CA.

Best Novel

  • Audition for the Fox, Martin Cahill (Tachyon)

  • Once Was Willem, M.R. Carey (Orbit US; Orbit UK)

  • The Secret Market of the Dead, Giovanni De Feo (Saga)

  • The Everlasting, Alix E. Harrow (Tor US; Tor UK)

  • The Adventures of Mary Darling, Pat Murphy (Tachyon)

(Note: 9 pm Thursday, August 27, after the Opening Ceremony until whenever we like)

Mark: It looks like the film adaptation of Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower is going to happen. We read it back in COVID times (December 2020). Read more on Variety

Paul F: Locus is releasing a Year's Best anthology through Kickstarter. They've already reached their initial goal and a few stretch goals that allowed them to add more stories, making it sound like a pretty huge collection. Personally, I love SFF anthologies because it's a great way to sample work from the best new writers out in the world, and the editor Jonathan Strahan has great taste IMO, so I'm excited about this. $15 for an ebook pre-order and $25 for the paperback. Campaign ends Aug 7. Check out the Kickstarter

Mark: The shortlist for the Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction is out. A couple of familiar authors on the list and one S&L pick! See the shortlist

Spriggana: Ursula K. Le Guin’s Home Recognized as National Historic Landmark, to host Writers’ Residency. Read more on Locus

Zomino: Fonda Lee is on her book tour for The Last Contract of Isako. She’ll be hitting up West Coast spots during the month of August, including WorldCon. Fonda Lee's Events

Robertaor: I'm still not sure live-action is the way to go, but at least they are making the smart choice for Princess Donut. Read more on Variety

BARE YOUR SWORD

Stephen:

"I went back and did a re-read, or rather a re-listen, to both the Dungeon Crawler Carl series and the Murderbot series. Both were on sale with Audible—Murderbot because they now have a full cast version and DCC because of the new release. I too had a hard time remembering, but both were so good it was a pleasure rather than a chore. Slow Gods suffered, as I rushed it, stopped it, restarted, and all in all, did not give it the time it deserved. But I will stand by my opinion: we should have read Claire North's Ithaca, a retelling of the tale from Penelope's POV. Considering all the talk around Nolan's film Odysseus, it would have been perfect. By the way, the group has left the Mary Sue criticism for The Four Doorways."

Ruth:

"^ I’m reading Ithaca right now and I’m enjoying it! I’m very happy for Tom and his wife both winning a ticket to see Le Sserafim! I hope we’ll be hearing some more performances of their songs on the podcast. 'Bad bitch in between your teeth… eat it up, eat it, eat it up…'"

Jan:

"S&L is way more fun if I don't like the book! Listening to the podcast and everyone hating the pastry shop... Uhm. 😬 Guys, S&L is WAY more fun if I don't like the book! I can enjoy the snark and laugh along and admire Tom for defending it (and occasionally feel a tiny bit guilty for not feeling the same as the ones who liked it). This wasn't that. 🙈 Sooo.... Do more books I dislike! (I'll let myself out and start listening to the How Did This Get Made?! podcast) 😅" Discord Link

Christos:

"What’s a SF/F scene that changed how you see the world/yourself? An obvious one for me is The Matrix / Dark City. A more recent example is a Doctor Who audio drama where a character is torturing an animal in a video game and the Doctor scolds him. The character says “the victim is not real, who cares.” The Doctor replies, “the victim isn’t real but the cruelty is real.” No joke, that really messed with my head because I immediately thought of all the characters I tortured in video games and felt bad. Another example is the novel Dark Matter by Blake Crouch about a guy fighting an evil version of himself from an alternate dimension. That made me think of what I would be like if my life went differently. I pretty much had an existential crisis." Discord Link

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Check In: This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews

Veronica accidentally read TWO portal books this month! The first one was Long Live Evil by Sarah Rees Brennan.

Calvey:

"So about 12 chapters in and curious, if you could pick your portal world to fall into, what would you pick? What do we think Veronica/Tom would pick? Mine would be Star Wars (Rebels timeline or between ANH/ESB). I know that is more movies, but I read a LOT of the legends in EU books. For books, while not sci-fi, I would pick J.D. Robb's In Death series and do a companion True Crime podcast (but have a lot of money). LOL. I am sure there may be others... will need to think on that. Veronica would pick ACOTAR I think. Tom I am not sure, something with tech maybe."

ADDENDUMS

Thank you to all the folks who help to back our show! If you want to help support the show, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #538 - It's The Words, Tom!

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What's the best SciFi/Fantasy book title. Are there too many Bobs? What about Murderbots?

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What Are We Nomming?

  • Tom: Pot stickers and Singapore-style noodles

  • Veronica: Orange Creamsicle "I'm Not Even Supposed To Be Here Today" Fruited Sour

Quick Burns

  • RumTum: "IGN can exclusively reveal that Bobiverse Book 6, The Infinite Extent, arrives on Audible this September, bringing back narrator Ray Porter to tackle the franchise's biggest intergalactic threats yet." (Read more on IGN)

  • CountZeroOr: Renegade Studios (who are the current publisher of the new edition of Vampire the Masquerade) has announced that they have partnered with AMC for a line of tabletop RPGs based on Anne Rice's novels (or at least the ones that AMC have adapted to the screen). (Read more on EN World)

  • trpw: The Guild Reunion movie (a project to mark the 20th anniversary of The Guild webseries) met its Kickstarter funding target inside a few hours of launch. (View the Kickstarter)

  • Scott: Vonda N. McIntyre's final novel, The Curve of the World, has been posthumously published. While the publication date appears to have been May 1, I discovered that fact through the Big Idea post on Scalzi's blog written by her editor for the book (and notable author in her own right), Nisi Shawl. It seemed worth noting to me. I still remember today how much of an impact Dreamsnake had on young teen me when I read it in the late 1970s. I looked up its Wikipedia page and see it won the Hugo, Locus, and Nebula best novel awards. I'm not surprised. (Read the post on Whatever)

  • Jan: There is a new Collection over at Humble Bundle for Tanith Lee, whom Sword and Laser listeners may know from our 2018 pick Night's Master! You can get bundles from 3 to 26 books, but the three-book bundle is only the first entries in three different series (including Night's Master)... (View the Humble Bundle)

Bare Your Sword

What do you think is the best SF/F book title? (Join the Discord discussion)

Paul:

Quick note on the conversation about Neal Stephenson's new book, a sequel to his last book Polostan, which Shane described as LOOOONNG, and which Tom said wasn't surprising for Stephenson.

I think Shane was being a bit flippant with that remark, because it's actually only 303 pages, making it easily his shortest novel to my knowledge. Perhaps Shane just didn't like it, which made it feel long? Tom also noted that he was surprised he hadn't heard of the book, and that's probably because it's historical fiction and in no way whatsoever considered genre. In fact, I struggled to find it in the bookstore when it came out because it was placed with the Mystery/Thrillers.

For what it's worth, I still liked it. It had his trademark super-detailed explanations of engineering (but for weird things seen in the Chicago World's Fair and Soviet smelters), as well as his humor and over-the-top drama. For reasons I can't fully articulate, I'm just addicted to the way he writes, but I can totally understand why people more into his SF works would bounce off of this book/series.

Stephen:

BookTok loves the Red Rising series. They will look me right in the eye (from my phone) and tell me it is the greatest series they have ever read. Guessing by their age I am figuring they grew up on Rick Riordan's books and Red Rising hit that itch.

Book of the Month Discussion

Kick Off

Wrap Up

hapahappiness:

Not sure if I'm just soft now or what, but this one had me shedding tears. Really loved being wrecked in delicate ways. I would give anything to have a conversation with my Dad like Yeon-hwa did with granny, so not only am I moved but also pretty jealous. Maybe I'll bake a brownie and drown it in ice cream or something. (Discord Link)

Gristle McNerd:

Yeah, unfortunately it didn't quite work for me. I think part of it was the translation, a lot of the prose felt kind of stiff and awkward. I mean, yes, the stories all (somewhat predictably) ended in tragedy, but I just kept hearing that "dumb ways to die" song in my head throughout because I could never quite achieve immersion. (Discord Link)

ScottM:

I loved each story and the characters developed in it as well as the threads connecting them. While I'm sure I missed some of the cultural nuance, the translator did a wonderful job preserving both the depth of the writing as well as conveying the underlying sense and feel of the novel. I found it a very quick read and didn't want to put it down. The way the spirits reacted and received comfort as they prepared for what came next gave it a cozy feel despite the nature of their stories. Told differently, essentially the same content could have easily been used to construct a horror novel instead. (Discord Link)

Spriggana:

This would be my third book from this particular subgenre, the previous two being Before the Coffee Gets Cold and We'll Prescribe You a Cat. And they mostly make me go "meh", like I know the book will try to be deep, and moving, and about people getting closure [1]. And I mostly do not care. Looks like I’m too jaded, or blasé, or cynical, or something.

Looking for a name for those books I have found a review blog that calls them "Healing Fiction". And the name, when I remove the "asian" part makes me think of books like The Shack or Eat, Pray, Love. And for me the western ones are different in form, but alike in intention, if it makes sense. And I do not care for them either. So it looks like it is me, not the books.

[1] The cat one had been a bit different, but had its own share of problems. (Discord Link)

Addendums

Our show is funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show and if you would like to support the show that way head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #537 - Roman Fantasy is Romantasy?

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Starlog is back! The Le Guin shortlist is out. Why Tom is naked. We kick off our July read and struggle to understand why some people think Red Rising is Romantasy. Now we know.

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What Are We Nomming?

  • Tom: Panko-crusted tilapia with roasted potatoes and braised zucchini

  • Veronica: Strawberry spritzer

Quick Burns

  • Tamahome: A new China Miéville novel is coming. View on The Broken Binding

  • Mark: Starlog (the magazine) is returning this fall with Annalee Newitz as editor! Her colleagues in this endeavor will also produce a weekly podcast and a newsletter. Starlog.com

  • Tamahøme: Neal Stephenson’s next book has been announced. View on HarperCollins

  • Mark and Chris K.: The 2026 Le Guin Prize for Fiction Shortlist is out! The 2026 selection panel includes Nicola Griffith, Mat Johnson, Fonda Lee, Darcie Little Badger, and Peter Rock. The winner will be announced on October 21, 2026 (Le Guin’s birthday). Read more at Locus

    • Audition by Pip Adam

    • Sunward by William Alexander

    • Call and Response by Christopher Caldwell

    • Midnight Timetable by Bora Chung, tr. Anton Hur

    • The Works of Vermin by Hiron Ennes

    • Notes from a Regicide by Isaac Fellman

    • Mad Sisters of Esi by Tashan Mehta

    • One Message Remains by Premee Mohamed

    • Slow Gods by Claire North

  • Trike: I found out from an Instagram post by P. Djèlí Clark that Subterranean Press is closing down. After a long career of publishing gorgeous limited editions, collections, art books, and novellas, publisher Bill Schafer shared the news that Subterranean Press will be permanently closing in the coming years. They intend to continue publishing work through the end of 2027, "which may bleed into 2028 as we wrap things up." Read more at Locus

Bare Your Sword

Kevin: I was going to say something rude about why Romantasy readers like Red Rising but instead I'll just say that Red Rising could have been worse if the idiot girl from Fourth Wing showed up moaning on and on and on about how much she hated that guy because of something, something but he's so hot that even though she hates him, he makes her all moist in her nether regions.

John replied: I haven't read Fourth Wing as romantasy really isn't my thing but this comment is making me reconsider that decision as it made me laugh out loud :-D

Ruth: Good to hear Tom singing another K-pop bop on the show! Boompala Boompala Boompala yeah…

Alan: Did Veronica call There Is No Antimemetics Division "There is No Anti-metrics Division"? That sounds more like a shadowy group opposing SI units.

John replied: There is a panoply of such groups in the UK, all in favour of, and I am being VERY kind in my language here, the "legacy" Imperial measurement system.

Jan: (If you're not visiting the Bare Your Sword forum in the Discord you missed this!) "What I posted was actually the third version. In the first version Donut wore a royal cape, so I did specify in the second image for Tom to be 'carrying a black and beige and white tortie Persian cat with a pink purple tiara and sunglasses but no other clothes' and the AI created this... 🫣" View on Discord

Aaron Bell: I am 90% confident that the Slow Wings episode had a fast food ad for me. I was mildly amused by that. Does the editor choose where the ad break goes, or is that entirely out of their hands?

Book of the Month Discussion

Kick Off

A Midnight Pastry Shop Called Hwawoldang by Lee Onhwa, translated by Slin Jung

Final Thoughts (Spoilery)

Red Rising by Pierce Brown

Stephen: I am 70% in. It could be like The Dresden Files where the first two books were okay but the series hits its stride in Book 3. For me it was Grapes of Wrath to Pygmalion (My Fair Lady) to Lord of the Flies. I did buy Book Two in the series when it was on sale, which I have heard said is a marked improvement.

NotSoRedEd: This is the first Sword and Laser book since I returned to the podcast with The Hexologists that I have abandoned without finishing. I’ve just completely lost interest in it. I thought the initial concept of an oppressive government keeping its citizens in slavery while they live in luxury was a great one, especially with the lying part about the terraforming of the planet (although I did see the twist coming). I also loved the bit where he was transformed into a Gold. But since the passage section, the whole Hunger Games style challenges have completely lost my interest. I simply don’t care what happens to any of the characters; I just think this section has been going on far too long. I noticed that I’m just putting the audiobook on to finish it rather than actually enjoying it. So for the first time in ages, I’ve decided to simply abandon a book. Anyone else feel the same way? View on Discord

Liqorice: I've seen a few places where romantasy readers proclaim their love for this book. I can see it being something that is aimed at a YA audience, but I don't see the romantasy appeal. I read it a while back but I don't recall any spice. Some of the posts I've seen emphasize how everything our protagonist does stems from love for his wife and how he is willing to destroy civilization for her memory — I guess they don't think of it as fridging? I'm just confused by the popularity of this book in general and with BookTok in particular. Clearly, I'm not the target audience. What am I missing? View on Discord

J.kidd: Something I keep turning over with Red Rising is how much of its narrative pleasure comes from the thing it's supposedly condemning. Obviously, the brutality of the Institute and the hypocrisy of the allegedly meritocratic system is depicted as Bad. However, while I'm reading the book I'm not really thinking "this is what's wrong with stratified societies," I'm more thinking "wouldn't it be thrilling to be good enough to win at this." I don't think Pierce Brown necessarily intended it, but it feels like you're meant to hate what Gold represents and also, somewhere in your lizard brain, want the sigil. There's a similar kind of dissonance in The Will of the Many. View on Discord

Addendums

Our show is funded by our patrons! Thank you to all the folks who back our show. If you would like to support the show, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #536 - That's So Ender's Game

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We check in on our June reading of Red Rising by Pierce Brown. Why do romantasy people like this? Veronica is making a tincture. And we have fun coming up with a Sci-Fi/Fantasy equivalent of the EGOT.

Download here!

What Are We Nomming?

Quick Burns

Nebula Awards Winners (via Spriggana)

N.K. Jemisin Grand Master Speech (Courtesy of Mark)

The 2026 Ignyte Awards Finalists (via Jan & LocusMag) The Ignyte Awards "seek to celebrate the vibrancy and diversity of the current and future landscapes of science fiction, fantasy, and horror." Nominated for Best Adult Novel are:

  • A Song of Legends Lost by M.H. Ayinde: Described on Amazon as "An unforgettable tale of revenge and rebellion [...] when a reckless king implements an ill-fated plan to end a thousand-year war."

  • Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite: From the online blurb: "When Ebun gives birth to her daughter, Eniiyi, on the day they bury her cousin Monife, there is no denying the startling resemblance between the child and the dead woman. So begins the belief, fanned by the entire family, that Eniiyi is the actual reincarnation of Monife, fated to follow in her footsteps."

  • Motheater by Linda H. Codega: Described as a "nuanced queer eco-fantasy set amid the Appalachian Mountains."

  • The Buffalo Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones: Described by Vulture as Jones' "Interview with the Indigenous Vampire."

  • Harmattan Season by Tochi Onyebuchi: Described as "West African lore meets Easy Rawlins."

2025 Stoker Awards Winners (via Spriggana)

Shortlist for the 2026 Arthur C. Clarke Award (via Spriggana)

The 2026 Lammys (via Jan) This year's Lambda Literary Awards Winner for "the best lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender books" in the category "LGBTQ+ Speculative Fiction" is Beings by Ilana Masad. The novel receives high praise from author Ruth Madievsky on the book's Goodreads page: "The alien abduction meets lesbian yearning novel that will restore your faith in the universe."

The 2026 Mythopoeic Awards Finalists (via Spriggana) The finalists have been announced. It's the third year of a separate award for YA books; children's books have had their own category since 1992. Personally, I have read three of the adult literature finalists: Audition for the Fox by Martin Cahill, Snake-Eater by T. Kingfisher, and The Incandescent by Emily Tesh.

Goodreads Readers’ Hit New Books of the Year (So Far) (via Jan) Goodreads has crunched their users' numbers! This covers books published between January and June categorized as “Read,” “Currently Reading,” or “Want to Read,” including only books with at least a 3.5-star average.

Subterranean Press Closing (via Mark) Bummer! Subterranean Press will be closing. They will continue publishing work through the end of 2027 as they wrap up their commitments. I've bought a lot of terrific SF&F books from them.

Bare Your Sword

Jan: What are we nomming from the extensive Red Rising Wiki's Food and Drinks section? Or anything else, really? And as the Venusian Fury Cocktail (made using rum, stout, and squid ink) doesn't sound that great, my cocktail suggestion for this month is the Tequila Sunrise:

  • 2 oz blanco tequila

  • 4 oz orange juice, freshly squeezed

  • 1/4 oz grenadine

Stir tequila and orange juice in a chilled highball glass over ice. Top with grenadine. (Personally, I like using 1/2 oz Aperol instead of the grenadine for a nice variation, even though the "red rising" effect is less pronounced).

Ruth: I very much enjoyed the discussion of Slow Gods in this episode, especially about Maw’s agency within the story, and his powers and how he chooses to use them (or not use them). I also liked the part about the ultimate lesson to ‘live with love’, although Tom’s quoting of the line ‘Nothing’s forever, so nothing’s to fear’ has lodged the song 'Boompala' by Le Sserafim in my head. I don’t know if this was an intentional quotation or if Tom has simply been ear-wormed as badly as I have by this insanely catchy K-pop mashup of the Macarena with snippets of Indian philosophy.

Jan: Motivation for Tom to walk away from DCC to start with this month's pick!

Book of the Month Discussion

Check-In: Red Rising by Pierce Brown

Addendums

Our show is funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show! If you would like to support the show that way, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #535 - Slow Wings

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Tom and Veronica remember when they read a book. It was called Slow Gods by Claire North. And they're definitely not just reading the latest Dungeon Crawler Carl book instead of that one or the next one, Red Rising.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

  • Tom: Homemade chicken wings and french fries

  • Veronica: Crabapple vodka spritzer

QUICK BURNS

Scott: Book Riot is getting the jump on other lists by publishing "The Best New Queer Science Fiction and Fantasy of 2026."

I just finished Ada Hoffmann's Ignore All Previous Instructions and definitely agree with its inclusion on any "best" list. And like many, I'm also eagerly awaiting the new Becky Chambers novel in October. There are plenty of authors new to me on the list whose book descriptions pique my interest.

Jan: New month, new "100 greatest novels of all time" list. This time it's The Guardian.

If we are leaving out magical realism (literary fiction sure loves its ambiguous ghost stories and allegorical supernatural elements), the Fantasy and Science Fiction novels included are:

  • The Road by Cormac McCarthy

  • The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin

  • Dracula

  • Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

  • The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

  • Frankenstein

  • Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

So no Lord of the Rings, Brave New World, or Dungeon Crawler Carl...

Jan: Another Quick Burn about a Prize Winner in another language:

The winners of the 2026 Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire, honoring the best SF/F work published in France in 2025, have been announced and the winner is Aatea by Anouck Faure.

The blurb of the novel sounds rather poetic:

"A navigator capable of steering his sailboat on the suspended oceans of the Cloud, Aatea is nonetheless an outcast in the eyes of his people: born at sea, he lacks the filament, the symbiotic organ that allows his people to coexist with gigantic living islands. The only way he can endure the servitude forced upon him by the caste system is through his maritime expeditions. However, after a pirate attack costs the lives of all his passengers, Aatea loses his right to sail.

Aatea then chooses the unthinkable: to flee the safety of the islands, abandoning everything and following in the path of his grandmother, an explorer whose tales had lulled his childhood."

Jan: The 2026 British Fantasy Awards Shortlists have been announced. Nominated for Best Fantasy Novel are:

  • A Song of Legends Lost by M.H. Ayinde

  • The Outcast Mage by Annabel Campbell

  • Magic, Maps, and Mischief by David Green (self-published)

  • Daughters of Nicnevin by Shona Kinsella

  • Grave Empire by Richard Swan

  • Upon a Starlit Tide by Kell Woods

  • Locus Mag: 2026 British Fantasy Awards Shortlists

Chris K.: 2026 Locus Awards Winners

SCIENCE FICTION NOVEL

  • WINNER: Death of the Author, Nnedi Okorafor (Morrow; Gollancz)

Other Nominees:

  • The Folded Sky, Elizabeth Bear (Saga; Gollancz)

  • Picks & Shovels, Cory Doctorow (Ad Astra; Tor)

  • Notes from a Regicide, Isaac Fellman (Tor)

  • When We Were Real, Daryl Gregory (Saga)

  • All That We See or Seem, Ken Liu (Saga; Ad Astra)

  • Where the Axe Is Buried, Ray Nayler (MCD; Weidenfeld & Nicolson)

  • Slow Gods, Claire North (Orbit US; Orbit UK)

  • The Shattering Peace, John Scalzi (Tor; Tor UK)

  • Shroud, Adrian Tchaikovsky (Tor UK; Orbit US)

FANTASY NOVEL

  • WINNER: The Everlasting, Alix E. Harrow (Tor; Tor UK)

Other Nominees:

  • The Devils, Joe Abercrombie (Tor; Gollancz)

  • The Tomb of Dragons, Katherine Addison (Tor; Solaris UK)

  • Lessons in Magic and Disaster, Charlie Jane Anders (Tor; Titan UK)

  • A Drop of Corruption, Robert Jackson Bennett (Del Rey; Hodderscape)

  • The Raven Scholar, Antonia Hodgson (Orbit US; Hodderscape)

  • Hemlock & Silver, T. Kingfisher (Tor; Tor UK)

  • Katabasis, R.F. Kuang (Harper Voyager; Harper Voyager UK)

  • The Incandescent, Emily Tesh (Tor; Orbit UK)

  • Queen Demon, Martha Wells (Tor)

  • Locus Mag: 2026 Locus Awards Winners

Jan: The Nuremberg bid is withdrawing from the race for the 2028 Worldcon.

As the Nuremberg 2028 page states:

"This decision comes from a mix of personal, organisational and timing reasons. Since our introduction at Smofcon in November, we have received wonderful support from volunteers, artists, experienced conrunners and communities across Central Europe. We are deeply grateful for that.

But as site selection begins, we have to be honest: we are not at the point where we would need to be in order to ask the community to vote for us and be ready to carry the responsibility of winning."

This leaves Brisbane the only remaining bid for WorldCon 2028.

BARE YOUR SWORD

Katie posted: Is there a shortage of translators from German to English?

I ask because I have a sort of dream to someday become a translator of SFF from German to English. The way some people dream that they might someday write a book. I dream that maybe someday I'll translate a book.

I don't know if this will ever happen. I have full-time work and not a ton of free time. I'm not even yet fluent in German. I just keep coming back to it, trying to learn, and especially to read in German. I don't even know if I'll actually be good at it yet.

And Jan posted a link to a page that "promotes German-language literature for translation into English in the UK, USA," and has resources for translators of all experience levels!

Jan also added: "I once translated the German 1980s He-Man and the Masters of the Universe audio play 'Anti-Eternia' into English for the English-speaking fan community, and that was way too much work already. And it doesn't exist anywhere online anymore...

Though that's one of my claims to 'fame' as I am responsible, through that fan translation, for Mattel now sometimes using the translation 'Castle Hellskull' on their toys (instead of the correct 'Castle Hell-Grayskull')—just because I thought back then that it sounded cooler and less clunky..."

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

June Pick Kickoff

Red Rising by Pierce Brown

FINAL THOUGHTS (Spoilery)

Slow Gods by Claire North

Jan: The month is almost over—so what have we been nomming this month while reading? Any foods or drinks in the book?

And I also want to give a (non-AI) cocktail recommendation, that's only based on the name of the novel:

A Slow Comfortable Screw Against the Wall

  • 1.5 oz Vodka

  • 0.5 oz Southern Comfort

  • 3 oz Orange Juice

  • 0.5 oz Sloe Gin

  • 0.5 oz Galliano

Directions: Stir Vodka, Southern Comfort, and Orange Juice with ice. Strain into an ice-filled glass. Drizzle in Sloe Gin to slowly blend, and then float Galliano on top (over the back of a spoon). Decorate with an orange wheel.

There is a whole family of cocktails, from the "Slow Screw" (Sloe Gin, Dry Gin, Orange Juice) to the "Slow Comfortable Screw Against a Cold Hard Wall With A Kiss" (Vodka, Sloe Gin, Southern Comfort, Orange Juice, Galliano, Overproof Rum, and Amaretto). I think that tells you a lot about parts of the cocktail world...

tilltab (Judge Ruth): I don’t know that this adds much to the book discussion, but feel inclined to post this anyway. I’ve struggled and felt lost for parts of this book, but I have, from the beginning, felt fond of Mawukana, and some of the language in this book is rather lovely. I was struck by this small paragraph and wanted to share:

“Of all the ships I’ve flown, I’ve always enjoyed being Emni most. We feel like sap and branch. We feel like leaves moving in the autumn wind. We feel like summer.”

Somehow, I feel that.

Jan: Regarding the snarky Slow Gods review snippet that was mentioned, here it is:

"The narrative structure is… peculiar. Let’s be generous and call it “experimental”. Less generously, it’s dry and oddly monotone. The story leans heavily on character-driven momentum, which would be fine if the central character had any interesting thoughts or qualities. Maw, bless him, has the personality of stale bread. Not freshly stale, either—the kind that’s been left out for days and could probably be used as a weapon. Not mouldy either—that would give it flavour—just dry."

So... maybe that explains it a bit better why I felt a little bad when hearing people were connecting with Maw so much...

That review excerpt is not from me but from this Goodreads review of Small Gods by "Denise":

Iain Bertram: For around the first half of this book, it did not give me any Space Opera vibes at all. Limited scope, one ship, an impending disaster with a creeping sense of dread. It didn't help that I was rereading Galactic Patrol at the same time, which is packed with plots (space battles by the second chapter and it does not slow down).

It took a while for me to realise the major difference between the two books is that Maw is neither a protagonist nor an antagonist. He is peripheral to a standard space opera story. In Galactic Patrol, Dune, and any number of other space operas (Iain M. Banks is the exception here), the main character is driving the plot or reacting to the antagonist. Most of the time Maw is confused and just trying to cope as events spiral out of control around him. While Maw has power, he does not have the knowledge or influence to affect events around him.

Then there is his nature. Maw seems to be a direct commentary on the nature of space opera heroes, and that is that they are monsters who are usually responsible for mass murder and the destruction of countless lives. Maw, on the other hand (and who has a name that signifies a vast, open space that seems to swallow up everything around it), does everything in his power to avoid taking lives. He is happiest running mercy missions with medical supplies and flying out refugees. It's an interesting comparison between those who start and fight wars and those who try and care for the people left in the wreckage.

terpkristin: For the record, I do not condone burning books. :D

That said, the house I'm currently living in has induction burners so I don't think I could burn the book if I tried. Not that I would try. My girl cat regularly turns on the stove as she walks across it. THAT is not ideal, hahaha.

tamahome: Ask her to make some eggs for you in the morning.

John Taloni: And what of Theodosius? After a lengthy search, Maw finds him at his island home. An island no longer dedicated to housing a dangerous quasi-prisoner, but one left to decay as Maw traveled the galaxy and took his part in freeing it.

Not just on the island, Maw finds Theodosius in his house. Not the glammed-up, charismatic figure that led the Shine, but a worn-down figure showing signs of age and decay. His various cosmetic surgeries wear poorly. Theodosius has taken over the house without anyone noticing or caring. He is no longer the epitome of desirable traits that the Shine had its leaders portray, to the point of having their own inflected pronoun. He's a shadow of what he was. Perhaps what he always was underneath the glamour.

Theodosius is still the over-assuming asshole. Speaks openly of how he contemplated how he could torture Maw for an extended period if he still had a team. But, oh no: Theodosius has found he wouldn't enjoy it as much. As ever, only his desires matter.

They talk of how Maw could kill him. And in the end, Maw can't even be bothered to do that. Maw goes to sleep in his bedroom.

We never find out what the final end is for Theodosius. He just doesn't matter.

"I HAVE, IN SHORT, STUDIED WHAT IT IS TO BE A GOD, AND THE CONCLUSION I CONSISTENTLY RETURN TO IS THIS: THAT IF ALL LIFE IS MEANINGLESS, ALL VALUES ARBITRARY AND ALL THINGS MUST END, THEN WHILE YOU LIVE, YOU SHOULD LIVE WITH LOVE."

ADDENDUMS

Our show is funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show, and if you would like to support the show that way, head to Patreon.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #534 - No Noox, Just Boox

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Jan has taken over the show and is exhibiting the personality of the AI from Dungeon Crawler Carl. Veronica hates awards. Tom puts the butt before the horse in deference to Veronica's theory of good things happening. And we don't wrap up Slow Gods, but we still have non-spoilery thoughts.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

  • Tom: Mushroom Risotto

  • Veronica: Lot 40 Whiskey

QUICK BURNS

Jan: So you want to know about a great non-English science fiction novel that will NEVER be translated into English? Well, I have found the right news for you! Lyneham by Nils Westerboer has won the German Kurd Laßwitz Prize 2026 for Best Science Fiction Novel.

But hey, I can at least translate the beginning of the Goodreads description for you:

Henry Meadows is turning twelve when Earth dies. With his father and siblings, he travels to "Perm," a primordial moon in a far-away solar system. Henry’s mother traveled on a different spaceship. The family awaits her arrival, but suddenly signs appear that she has already been there — long ago. And she has left behind a warning...

You can read more about the other winners over on Locusmag (Hint: Best translated work is To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers).

Jan: Alchemised by SenLinYu has actually won something! Not the "Best Harry Potter Fan Fiction turned Novel that has absolutely nothing to do with Harry Potter anymore wink wink, but we'll market the heck out of that fact anyway" Award, but the 2026 British Book Award in the Category Science Fiction & Fantasy. At least that's what LocusMag is telling me, so it must be true!

(I am very sorry about these Quick Burns, I am currently listening to "Parade of Horribles" and apparently this is influencing my writing style!)

Phil: There's a Humble Bundle of 31 books by Robert Silverberg available for the next 15 days. I've read a fair number of them and can recommend his writing. It does include the Majipoor books. You can check it out on Humble Bundle.

Clyde added: "I read most of his books back when, as a bard once said, 'I wore a younger man's clothes.' (Hmm… I think it is about time to reread Lord Valentine's Castle.) For those interested in Silverberg the man, I recommend Traveler of Worlds: Conversations with Robert Silverberg. It gives a glimpse into his life both in and out of the SF&F world. And, it provides a vision of Silverberg's wide-ranging interests and is well seasoned with his dry wit."

Jan: Hello Cra... Shields! Goodreads has released its list of the most anticipated books this summer, and of course, there are genre lists included.

The most anticipated Fantasy books include:

  • The Unicorn Hunters by Katherine Arden

  • Winner of this summer’s unofficial Best Book Title award, Fishbone Cinderella by Elizabeth Lim

  • Victorious by V.E. Schwab

Science Fiction includes:

  • Moss’d in Space by Rebecca Thorne (which apparently is about a spaceship covered in sentient moss)

  • As You Wake, Break the Shell by Becky Chambers

Romantasy I am skipping, as for some reason none of the titles follows the "An X of Y and Z" romantasy novel title generator format, which I find hugely disappointing. (But which may be fixed when the 6th and so far untitled book of A Court of Thorns and Roses gets revealed, even though Goodreads cheated by including that book because October 27 is definitely not part of summer anymore). But if you want to read up on the Romantasy list and all the other books, you can find it over on Goodreads. Now get out there and read, read, read!

Mark: Prime Video orders Fourth Wing to series. Ladies and gentlemen, start your dragons! Read more on Variety.

Mark: If you use an ePaper device to read ebooks, then this is the gizmo for you: a Bluetooth page turner! Check out the BOOX Tappy Wireless Page Turner.

BARE YOUR SWORD

Jan: I would totally buy a Sword & Laser cookbook! And most of the stuff I contributed was ChatGPT stuff anyway, so no problem with authorship there... *g*

Jan: Regarding the "best/most popular novel thing": I did a bit of editorializing when posting this, as the article starts talking about crowning "the best" fantasy novel but then shifts midway through to talking about popularity... So I felt this contradiction as well when posting the news. I also checked Screenrant and there didn't seem to be anything on other genres, but since posting the news, they have also released an article about the Best Science Fiction and Thriller novels.

The "Best" Sci-Fi novel is Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir and the "most popular" Thriller Mystery is The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides (see, they did it again — mixing popularity and quality!). Check out the articles on Screenrant for Sci-Fi and Thriller Mystery.

Paul: Regarding that best/most popular of the last 10 years post, I think the reason Circe showed up as the biggest fantasy is largely thanks to the author's previous book, The Song of Achilles, being one of the biggest books to benefit from the BookTok phenomenon. Circe wasn't nearly as big of a deal, but I remember always seeing it displayed next to the wall of Song of Achilles books at bookstores back in 2022 and 2023, and so I think people who wanted more from Miller flocked to Circe. Since Circe was published in 2018 while Song of Achilles was published in 2011, though, it got the title of most popular fantasy of the last decade.

This is by no means a slight. Miller writes very well and it had large appeal; I'm just saying it won because it was the BookTok fantasy published after 2016. Similarly, ACOTAR was published in 2015, so it was also disqualified because of its publishing date. I'd be curious to see the stats of ACOTAR vs Fourth Wing. BookTok really messed with traditional bookselling and lending though, no question. At my workplace at the time, I would make a poster with a list of the most requested books of the month for my public library, and it was the first time that books published 5–10 years ago were our most requested items. Like Colleen Hoover. She'd been publishing junky romances for over a decade and nobody cared, until suddenly 4 of her books were on our Top Ten list, and we only had 2 copies in the entire city. Our poor acquisitions department had no idea what was going on until somebody was like, "Get on TikTok NOW!"

Melissa: I read Angel Down and I thought it was brilliant! I was surprised that anyone would place it in the science fiction genre. It’s a story of soldiers in No Man’s Land in WWI who discover an angel trapped in barbed wire. The descriptions of war, along with this supernatural component, place it firmly in the horror genre. Kraus writes the novel in one continuing sentence, which mirrors the unrelenting violence and horror of war. The text is broken up into sections, so it isn’t difficult to read once you get used to it. It is NOT for sensitive readers. The descriptions of what happens to bodies on the battlefield are visceral.

The Book Review podcast from the New York Times just posted an episode with Daniel Kraus in which he discusses his novel. The episode also includes an interview with Patricia Cornwell, so the episode is titled “Patricia Cornwell on Her Dark Childhood.” The Kraus interview is first in the episode, and he discusses how he decided to write the novel in one sentence.

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Jan: But listening to the podcast makes me feel bad for neither connecting to the main character nor the writing style — and even more for posting a mean-spirited review excerpt about Maw. I am glad people love this book, the language, and the character! It makes me think about my own biases dismissing both so easily.

ADDENDUMS

Our show is funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show! If you would like to support the show that way, head over to Patreon.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast #533 – Octavia Butler's Ghost

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The Hugo voting is open! The Guild is coming back! Is "best and most popular" actually fair? Is it right to defy a dead author's wishes? Tom risks Octavia Butler's ghost to explain. Plus, we share our opening thoughts on Slow Gods by Claire North.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

  • Tom: Spinach cream tortellini

  • Veronica: McVeggie

QUICK BURNS

Hugo Voting is Open! The online voting system is now available at nomnom.lacon.org. The voting packet is one of the best perks of being a voting member of WSFS. Thanks to specious_reasons and @BethMitcham for the heads-up.

The Guild is Coming Back! Check out the details at Launch Oracle.

Pulitzer Prize for Fiction Jan shared via Locus Mag: Angel Down by Daniel Kraus has won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. The jury described the book as a “breathless novel of World War I, a stylistic tour-de-force that blends such genres as allegory, magical realism and science fiction into a cohesive whole, told in a single sentence.” Read more at Locus Mag.

The "Best" Fantasy of the Decade Jan also noted a Screen Rant article crowning Circe by Madeline Miller as the "most popular" fantasy novel of the past decade based on Goodreads data (defined as books with the highest shelving and an average rating above 3.5 stars, published from 2017 to present). By the same metrics, Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros is the most popular Romantasy novel. Read the full list here.

Master Alvin Arrives Phil spotted that Master Alvin, the seventh and last book of the Alvin Maker series by Orson Scott Card, has finally been released—22 years after the previous book, The Crystal City.

Octavia Butler’s "Lost" Novel Seth shared that 40 years after Octavia Butler asked that her novel Survivor not be reprinted, a new edition is coming. This raises the question: how much control should an author’s wishes have after their death? Full story at LA Times.

BARE YOUR SWORD

On DNF (Did Not Finish) Etiquette Stephen asks: "Does the DNF shelf still give you the option to rate and write a review? I always just move the book from 'Currently Reading' to the 'To Be Read' shelf and then delete it from there—no rating at all. It makes me feel better because I’m not affecting an author's book rating or hurting their earnings, especially with self-published works. Also, sometimes my brain just does not want to deal with a specific story, but maybe in a couple of months things will change.

Also, this May brings a new Murderbot story and new Dungeon Crawler Carl. Doing a re-listen as Audible had all the DCC on sale a month ago. Tom can fill up May quick!"

On Podcast Ads Seth asks: "Anyone else get ads on this episode? I don't remember it being mentioned that Tom and Veronica were shifting to including ads—I might have missed it, or it could be an artifact of the move to a new platform? I'm in the UK if it's some local setting that might have an effect?"

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Slow Gods by Claire North

Goodreads Threads:

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show! If you would like to support us, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #532 - Chekhov's Dead Body

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Eat zucchini! And Bleu cheese. Also, we didn’t get nominated for a Hugo, but loads of our favorite authors did. We kick off our May read (a little early) and wrap up our spoiler thoughts on The Raven Scholar.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

Tom: Soybutter-glazed salmon and zucchini with rice

Veronica: Bleu cheese Beyond Burger with grilled onions

QUICK BURNS

specious_reasons Sword and Laser didn't make it into the fancast category despite our meager efforts. Here are the novel nominees:

  • A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett (Del Rey; Hodderscape)

  • Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor (William Morrow; Gollancz)

  • Shroud by Adrian Tchaikovsky (Tor UK; Orbit US)

  • The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow (Tor US; Tor UK)

  • The Incandescent by Emily Tesh (Tor US; Orbit UK)

  • The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson (Orbit US; Hodderscape)

Mark: The Raven Scholar, this month's pick, was nominated for Best Novel, and author Antonia Hodgson was also nominated for the Astounding Award. The previous month's pick, Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz, was nominated for Best Novella. Previous S&L authors Scalzi, Heather Fawcett, and Max Gladstone were nominated for Best Series: Old Man's War, Emily Wilde, and The Craft Wars, respectively. Alas, Sword and Laser didn't make the cut for Best Fancast, so we'll try again next year.

Mark: The 2026 Locus Awards finalists have been posted — 10 titles each in Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, Young Adult, First Novel, Translated Novel, and more! Sword and Laser picks making the cut are The Devils by Joe Abercrombie and The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson in Fantasy, plus Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz in Novellas.

Silvana: Amazon is ending their service for Kindle devices older than 2013.

Seth: Spotify has launched direct links to Bookshop, allowing users to buy books. This comes shortly after they launched the page-match feature that lets you scan the physical page you're on and stream your audiobook straight from that point. I'm not terribly excited that another tech giant has decided to compete with bookstores, but on the other hand, they're going through Bookshop, which is kind of nice.

Trike: Good Omens S3 — Amazon Prime, May 13. New character introduction, name of… ::checks notes:: …Jesus.

Trike: The Dog Stars — in theatres August 28. Based on the book The Dog Stars.

BARE YOUR SWORD

Ruth: I made a DNF shelf on Goodreads years ago and it currently has 97 books on it. I'm an enthusiastic Lemmer — if a book isn't doing it for me, I'll just stop reading it and try something else instead. Life is short, and my TBR shelf is long.

Paul: That should be on a shirt or something: Life is Short. My TBR is Long. DNF it. (Or the S&L exclusive version: Lem it.)

Scott: I wanted to share this article regarding Animorphs and the Disney+/Ryan Coogler adaptation in the works. I remember reading some of the early ones, likely when my younger kids were discovering them. I was struck that they had the marker of one of those series that took children seriously.

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Kick Off Slow Gods by Claire North — Bookshop

Wrap Up The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson — Bookshop

Mark: Goddammit Donut! Now I have to read the next book in the series and it doesn't have a release date yet — some time in 2027 perhaps? On Goodreads, the second volume, The Fox in Winter, has 40 ratings and 30 reviews, even though it doesn't exist. What's this world coming to?

Jan (as of Chapter 16): I am suspecting the emperor. He's described as savvy, but his decisions are very strange and suspicious. He is painting a huge target on Neema's back constantly, which would be very convenient if he was involved. If she hadn't been poisoned and left the island in a timely manner, she probably would have been the main suspect due to her demotion — and if he knows about it — her little "problem." Maybe she would have just been killed before a proper investigation. Making her a contender and allowing her to lead the investigation also seems very ill-advised, but if he ordered the murder himself, it could explain why he'd want to give the public more reasons to suspect her.

Iain Bertram: My money is on Neema's (Toads') assistant. I think she is the exiled twin whom the dog soldier pulled a Snow White on. I think the emperor wants a commoner on the throne to complete his changes.

Liquorice: I just finished Yasila's backstory. Probably completely out in left field, but the idea in the back of my mind is that Visitor Pyke — not Andren — is Roku and Yana's father. Pyke helped her escape because she was pregnant by him. Pyke is at the contest to stop Roku from becoming Emperor because (a) he hates Roku for betraying Yana, and (b) that means Roku is really a Dragon and his ascension would bring back the Eight. Gaida was killed by Yasila/Pyke to put in place a more acceptable candidate for Emperor that the Dragons could live with.

Jan: Yeah, no, I didn't see that coming! What the… The twists and turns in this book… Wow!

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show! If you'd like to support the show, head to Patreon.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #531 - Interesting Nacho

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We have a hurt Veronica, Cadbury eggs, Nebula Award winners, and Tom Bombadil-lo! Plus, we kick off The Raven Scholar and wrap up Automatic Noodle. Which, of course, leads to Veronica's new business plan for a nacho bar.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

  • Tom: Chicken Chow Mein

  • Veronica: Mini Eggs

QUICK BURNS

Scott: The Nebula Award finalists have been announced. The Nebula Award for Best Novel Nominees:

  • When We Were Real, by Daryl Gregory (Saga)

  • The Buffalo Hunter Hunter, by Stephen Graham Jones (Saga; Titan UK)

  • Katabasis, by R.F. Kuang (Harper Voyager US; Harper Voyager UK)

  • Death of the Author, by Nnedi Okorafor (Morrow; Gollancz)

  • The Incandescent, by Emily Tesh (Tor; Orbit UK)

  • Sour Cherry, by Natalia Theodoridou (Tin House; Wildfire)

  • Wearing the Lion, by John Wiswell (DAW; Arcadia) Official Nebula Announcement

Trike, ezeller & Racer951y: Dungeon Crawler Carl is officially in development for Peacock by Seth MacFarlane’s company, with Christopher Yost writing. Yost co-created the character X-23 and has written films like Thor: Ragnarok. Variety Article

Silvana: An Animorphs TV series is in development with Ryan Coogler as executive producer. Variety Article

Mark: Goodreads adds a "DNF" (Did Not Finish) shelf for folks who "lem" books! What could they possibly do to top this enhancement? 😑 Goodreads Blog

Roberator: It looks like Wheel of Time may return to the screen, but in animated form. I wish the live action was continuing, but I'll probably check these out if they get made. I'm a bit off-put by them targeting younger audiences. ScreenRant Article

Tamahome: Warner Bros. has revealed that Stephen Colbert and his son are developing a brand new Lord of the Rings movie: The Lord of the Rings: Shadows of the Past. The plot will come from chapters of The Fellowship of the Ring that didn’t make it into Jackson’s 2001 adaptation (Chapter III, "Three Is Company," through Chapter VIII, "Fog on the Barrow-Downs").

“Fourteen years after the passing of Frodo—Sam, Merry, and Pippin set out to retrace the first steps of their adventure. Meanwhile, Sam’s daughter, Elanor, has discovered a long-buried secret and is determined to uncover why the War of the Ring was very nearly lost before it even began.”

Variety Article

BARE YOUR SWORD

Trike: A couple of interesting videos about book covers popped up in my YouTube feed:

Phil: What were the books you gave 5 stars to in 2025 and which were your favorites? Phil’s 5-Star Reads:

  • Olympos by Dan Simmons

  • The Hermit of Eyton Forest by Ellis Peters

  • Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

  • Anima Rising by Christopher Moore

  • The Swords of Lankhmar by Fritz Leiber

  • Swords in the Mist by Fritz Leiber

  • The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins

  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman (Favorite!)

  • The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman

  • The Narrow Road Between Desires by Patrick Rothfuss

  • Termination Shock by Neal Stephenson

  • Midworld by Alan Dean Foster

Veronica’s 5-Star Reads 2025:

  • The Book That Wouldn’t Burn (The Library Trilogy, #1) by Mark Lawrence

  • A Drop of Corruption (Shadow of the Leviathan, #2) by Robert Jackson Bennett

  • The Tainted Cup (Shadow of the Leviathan, #1) by Robert Jackson Bennett

  • The Knight and the Moth (The Stonewater Kingdom, #1) by Rachel Gillig

  • The Will of the Many (Hierarchy, #1) by James Islington

  • Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman

  • The Devils by Joe Abercrombie

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Kick-Off: The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson

Wrap-Up: Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz

Aaron Bell on Robot Names: Any thoughts on the names (given and chosen) of the robots of Automatic Noodle? Only on my second time through did I catch that Stay-behind's sockpuppet persona was a nod to their wartime call sign. Bowtie and Ascot.

Aaron Bell on Connection: I listened to this about 6 months ago and intend to re-read/listen this month. Initial impressions: It was well written, but I didn't feel I connected with the characters (the bots) as much as intended. I think the intelligence gathering angle felt a bit rushed. I was also a bit turned off by the whole "California vs. America" thing, but I suppose that is to be expected from a certain breed of author steeped in West Coast culture (see also some of Cory Doctorow's recent work).

Jan on Signature Dishes: Our robots concentrate on one dish, which made me wonder: What would be your "one" signature dish?

"I think my signature dish at the moment would be my variant of the Anthony Bourdain Mortadella Sandwich: Crispy toasted breadroll, with good pan-fried Mortadella, molten low-moisture Mozzarella, Dijon mustard, and German tartar sauce with added minced pickle and jalapeno... We make it at least once a week!"

Veronica: "Wait... his name was HANDS this whole time??"

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show! If you would like to support us, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast #530 – You’re Pulling My Noodle

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Veronica's sick but she soldiers on and we review the final four of the March tournament. Plus our non-spoiler check in on Automatic Noodle. Also, we talk about our favorite noodles.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

  • Tom: Taquitos and Caesar Salad

  • Veronica: Peppermint Tea

REMINDER: Patreon Billing Changes

The Week of March 23rd, 2026: Patreon will migrate our account from "per episode" to "monthly" billing.

Your membership will be converted from a “per creation” amount to a “monthly” amount. You will remain on the same tier and receive the same benefits. Below are the new monthly tier prices:

Shieldbearers: $1/creation = $3/monthly

Lasermaster: $3/creation = $9/monthly

Knighthood/Space Marine Level!: $5/creation = $15/monthly

Lem's Library Cardholders: $10/creation = $30/monthly

Lem's Librarians: $20/creation = $60/monthly

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Note: If you applied a monthly maximum to your posts, your membership may be lower than the new tier price. This price will be maintained as long as you use your current payment method.

Helpful Guides:

We are sharing this now so you have time to make adjustments before it takes effect on March 21st. Thank you for supporting Sword and Laser!

MARCH FINAL FOUR

Which of these will move on? One of these matchups is currently a dead heat, while the other has a 42-vote lead!

  • There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm (aka Sam Hughes) | Goodreads

  • Slow Gods by Claire North | Goodreads

  • Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao | Goodreads

  • The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson | Goodreads

QUICK BURNS

Phil: Legendary author Dan Simmons (Hyperion, The Terror) passed away from a stroke last Saturday at the age of 77. While his later works, like 2011's Flashback, drew heavy criticism for their political themes, his contribution to the genre via the Hyperion Cantos remains a staple for many fans. Read the Guardian Obituary.

Mark: Coming this November from John Scalzi and Tor Books: Monsters of Ohio, a heartfelt exploration of a tentacular solution to the struggles of the modern world. Details at Tor.

Mark: Scalzi is also taking an indefinite hiatus from book club invitations due to the sheer volume of spam. He noted: "I can spend my days sorting 'book club' spam, or I can write books. One pays me money. The other does not." Read more at Whatever.

Calvey: ACOTAR fans rejoice! ACOTAR 6 is set for October 27, 2026, followed quickly by ACOTAR 7 on January 12, 2027. The Cut Article.

Mark: The British Book Awards have added a Science Fiction & Fantasy category! The shortlist includes:

  • Alchemised by SenLinYu

  • Brimstone by Callie Hart

  • Ice by Jacek Dukaj (trans. Ursula Phillips)

  • Katabasis by R.F. Kuang

  • Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

  • The Devils by Joe Abercrombie

BARE YOUR SWORD

terpkristin: The pronunciation of Eyre was amusing. Right on point for this show, which I still love.

tamahome: She should have been named "Jane Eyrie." She might have had some corvid blood.

Stephen: How did Tom and Veronica go through life and miss all the Jane Eyre adaptations? If you have 2 to 5 hours, YouTube has the 1943 version with Orson Welles, Joan Fontaine, and Agnes Moorehead! Plus, Netflix has a new one planned with White Lotus star Aimee Lou Wood.

Jan: I feel the very carefully phrased statement about how long it took Tom to finish the book is the closest thing we will ever get to Tom "hating" a book. 😅 (Disclaimer: I am NOT saying Tom hated it! I just thought it was funny.)

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz Amazon | Bookshop

Community Thoughts:

  • terpkristin: "If ever there was a book for 'what are we nomming,' this is it... For Italian noodles, I love a good penne alla vodka."

  • Aaron Bell: "There are a bunch of cryptocurrencies mentioned early on... I know ETH is mentioned, which is a real one designed for self-executing contracts."

  • Jan: "If any pick asks for a 'what are we nomming?' thread, it's a book about robots making 'authentic' biang biang noodles!"

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show! If you would like to support us, head over to: patreon.com/swordandlaser

S&L Podcast - #529 - Fuzzy Edges

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A voter's guide to our March Madness tournament. How to define genres. Your favorite Sci-Fi/Fantasy quotes. And we wrap up our thoughts on Someplace to Be Flying by Charles de Lint.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

Tom: Penne Bolognese Veronica: More Hot Chocolate than Woman Now

Patreon Change

The Week of March 23rd, 2026, Patreon will migrate us from per episode to monthly billing.

Your membership will be converted from a “per creation” amount to a “monthly” amount, and you will remain on the same tier you are on and receive the same benefits. Below are the new monthly tier prices given to us by Patreon:

  • Shieldbearers: $1/creation = $3/monthly

  • Lasermaster: $3/creation = $9/monthly

  • Knighthood/Space Marine Level!: $5/creation = $15/monthly

  • Lem's Library Cardholders: $10/creation = $30/monthly

  • Lem's Librarians: $20/creation = $60/monthly

If you applied a monthly maximum to the number of posts you pay for each month, this may result in a monthly membership that is lower than the new price of that tier. This price will be maintained as long as you continue to use your current payment method.

If you would like to make changes to your membership, it’s easy to modify the amount of membership within this tier or to switch to another one that we offer. Below are guides to help you do this:

Thanks for your understanding as we make this change. We're telling you now so you have time to make any adjustments before this takes effect on March 21st. Let us know if you have any questions. And thanks for supporting Sword and Laser!

QUICK BURNS

March Madness is underway! Cast your votes on the Official Tournament Page or view the Full Poll List on Goodreads.

News & Announcements

BARE YOUR SWORD

Paul on Genre Definitions: "Speculative fiction explores a 'What if...' question that could not be explored in the world as we know it... Sci-fi answers 'What if...' questions that COULD happen... while Fantasy answers What Ifs that COULD NOT happen... midichlorians in Star Wars... whether you agree with their assessment of science or not, that was the intent." Join the discussion on Goodreads.

Trike: "That doesn’t work for me... Pern is absolutely not Science Fiction... Dragons with telepathy and teleportation just because they will it? Utter Fantasy."

Jan on Favorite Quotes: "Mine is from Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett: '...at a time like this it behooves all decent men to nearly stand up and be almost heard... No one said anything. The cowards, thought each man.'" Join the Discord discussion.

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

KICK OFF Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz Bookshop link

WRAP UP Someplace to Be Flying by Charles de Lint Bookshop Link

Community Notes

  • Tamahome: Check out the episode notes on Discord.

  • Shane: "Carrie is the worst offender... we get her internal monologue about how she just doesn't get it over and over again." Full comment here.

  • JasonB: "This pick made me feel nostalgic for the 90s... ISTWATBBOD made me think about my relationship to the Internet."

  • ScottM: "This book is both grounded in an interconnected web of family... and at the same time mythic in scale." Read more on Discord.

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show! If you would like to support the show, head to Patreon.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #528 - Dazed and Crowfused

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It's time for our March book tournament! Nominations are open. Also, Veronica and Tom have shocking revelations about books they have NOT read. Also, why is Tom having a hard time with this month's pick?

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

Tom: Korean Fried Chicken

Veronica: Hot chocolate, obviously

SWITCHING TO MONTHLY BILLING. Details to come

QUICK BURNS

Our entirely mad March tournament has begun to take nominations! Information Thread Nomination Thread

Each year we take nominations from our members for the Sci-Fi and Fantasy books they think the group should read and narrow it down to 16. We create two brackets, one for each genre. That means there are 8 Sword picks, and 8 Laser picks.

The 16 books are selected by our benevolent leaders based on your suggestions in the nomination thread and a super secret criteria of their own making for seeding etc.

Once the brackets are set we have 4 rounds of voting. Rounds 1-3 will take us from 8 Sword books and 8 Laser books down to 1 of each that will go head-to-head to be our pick for April.

This single-elimination style tournament is inspired by some sporting event that takes place every year during the month of March. Does your nomination have what it takes to win 4 straight head-to-head matchups and become our April book pick? Let the madness begin!

Schedule & Details Here is the schedule for this year's tournament:

Nominations: February 5th - February 19th 7pm ET Round of 16: February 22nd - 28th 11:59 PM ET Round of 8: March 1st - 7th 11:59 PM ET Round of 4: March 8th - 14th 11:59 PM ET Final Round: March 15th - 21st 11:59 PM ET

jasonb - My local library now has its own version of March Madness!!!

Tamahome: Vote for the best books at Locus. I didn't realize it was an open poll. It's nice the winners are a long list: 2025 Recommended Reading

Tamahome: Eragon, Disney+’s live-action adaptation of Christopher Paolini‘s popular YA book series The Inheritance Cycle, has taken a major step in the development process, firming up its creative team and opening a writers' room. High Potential showrunner Todd Harthan has been tapped to co-create the series with Paolini, with Harthan and Todd Helbing (Superman & Lois) set as co-showrunners. Also boarding the project is Marc Webb (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend), who has signed on as an executive producer. A writers' room for Eragon opened late last year and is currently ongoing. Source

Trike: Saw this pop up on Kickstarter — a new tabletop game is being created based on Naomi Novik’s Temeraire novel series, which is her “Napoleonic Wars with dragons” world. Way back in 2013 (holy cannoli!) Sword & Laser read the first book, His Majesty's Dragon.

Trike: Project Hail Mary final trailer, theaters, March 20.

BARE YOUR SWORD Feedback from the audience

Trike (new) Veronica canonized? Don’t shoot her out of a cannon! That’s mean!

Tamahome (new) Veronica should be Canadianized.

John (agni4lisva) I thought she already was :-D

Jan: The Sword & Laser genres are quite... flexible I feel. I mean if you want, Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream is fantasy—just like Grimm's fairy tales can be considered fantasy. Regarding science fiction, it's maybe a little more difficult because it can be quite difficult to define what science fiction is; it doesn't have to be about the future, it doesn't have to be about technology. The James Bond gadgets—at least in the movies—are basically sci-fi but aren't usually categorized as such. But alternate history is often considered science fiction and that is opening the possibility that anything that doesn't exactly replicate reality is science fiction 😉

Hi Tom, When Sword and Laser did Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy in November 2024, I thought that I would do a video on the book and radio series to coincide with it. So much for planning. It has taken me far too long to get this finished, but it is now. Here's a link if you are interested — Tim Watson / TRPW (on Discord)

And the winner of the book was Jody! Hello, this may not be relevant, but I heard it on today’s Morning Stream from Wendy (knowbetteru.com), as people had hard times getting through this month’s book, Wendy says “don’t feel guilty with what you do with your time.” Don’t feel guilty if you choose to stop the book and do something else.

Also from Wendy — Gandalf: "I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo. "So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us."

Paraphrase: All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.

(Wendy) “You have the power and control over your life”; read books, be kind, paint a picture with your non-dominant hand, drift off, daydream, and do not feel guilty about what is not getting done. Just enjoy the time we have. Yes, this is coming from my privileged space, but don’t let the algorithm get you down; fight past it and help others, or help yourself until you feel ready to tackle the next adventure on your list. My next adventure is cleaning the bathroom while listening to The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin, the assigned book for February at Cleveland Library’s Sci-Fi and Fantasy Book Club.

Take care and stay warm!! Sending this Friday, January 30th. 14°F/-10°C/263K expected -4°F/-20°C/253K.

BTW next week is preseason Aramco testing in Bahrain, a nibble to get me through to March 6th.

ALSO your team is amazing, Tom & Veronica of course!! But all of you who put this podcast on for us month after month and do other podcasts to fill our ears, thank you very, very much!

Jody

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Someplace to Be Flying by Charles de Lint Bookshop Link

Tassie Dave: This is our 200th Official Book Pick. More to come in another post. It is listed as Book 5 of the series, but a Google search tells me that they exist in the same universe and this is a standalone story. Sounds interesting. Our first Dutch-born author. He is a Canadian now. Goodreads Thread

Liquorice: No, there aren't long scenes with our main characters baking scones or making coff... wait, they do make coffee and sit around and drink it and just talk. I don't think there was a word for it back when this book was written but I like that it just sort of ambles along—okay, I dare say it—cozily. There is no huge plot reveal early on that sets up tension and activity and rallies the troops around it. We know something is blowing in on the wind; there are enough plot hints dropped to tell us that. Is anybody else getting prehistorical cozy vibes? Discord Conversation

ADDENDUMS Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show, and if you would like to support the show that way, head to Patreon. You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

Email Us Official Website We are on Instagram, X, and Mastodon @swordandlaser Goodreads Group

S&L Podcast - #527 - I'm Starting to Worry This Book Isn't Sci-Fi

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Andrew Heaton from the Political Orphanage stops by to talk about "I'm Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom" by Jason Pargin. Also, Veronica drinks in reverse. You'll understand if you listen.

Download directly!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

  • Tom: Mushroom Gnocchi

  • Veronica: Hamburger Night!

QUICK BURNS

Mike and the Centaur: Cover art for the hardcover edition of A Parade of Horribles is out! The eBook will release on 5/12/26, followed by the Audible audiobook on 5/26/26. Ace’s hardcover edition and a limited run of trade paperbacks from Grim Oak Press will both be published on 6/2/26. Full release dates here.

Roberator: You can now watch the Indie Author documentary free on YouTube. It features past S&L authors Michael J. Sullivan, Travis Baldree, Andy Weir, M.L. Wang, and many others.

Tom: Apple has signed a deal with popular fantasy author Brandon Sanderson for film and TV rights to Sanderson's "Cosmere" universe, according to The Hollywood Reporter. While he has a large body of work, reports suggest Mistborn could be turned into a movie series, while The Stormlight Archive is also in consideration.

Seth: Library awards came out for all sorts of books this week. Here are the genre-fiction selections for the The Reference and User Services Association 2026 Reading List.

Fantasy Winner: The Knight and the Moth: The Stonewater Kingdom: Book One by Rachel Gillig (Orbit).

  • Read-alikes: The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow, Godkiller by Hannah Kaner, The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri.

  • Short List: Greenteeth by Molly O’Neill, The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson, Red City by Marie Lu, and The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar.

Science Fiction Winner: Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz (Tordotcom).

  • Read-alikes: A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers, The Year Without Sunshine by Naomi Kritzer, and You Sexy Thing by Cat Rambo.

  • Short List: The Heist of Hollow London by Eddie Robson, Hole in the Sky by Daniel H. Wilson, When We Were Real by Daryl Gregory, and Where the Axe is Buried by Ray Nayler.

BARE YOUR SWORD

The Goodreads thread is some excellent meditation on the definition of generations. Tamahome ended the thread nicely with: "I like a rock song with some boomer bends."

On DRM and E-books:

  • Anonymous: "At the risk of admitting to something illegal, I buy epubs from ebooks.com, strip the DRM with Calibre, and email them to my Kindle."

  • Anonymous: "Yeah I do the same, or did the same with Kindle purchases so I could keep a DRM-free backup... until they nipped the manual download feature in the bud. Haven't felt the need to purchase a Kindle book since then. And AFAIK for US people, the DMCA allows stripping DRM for backup purposes."

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Kick Off: Someplace to Be Flying by Charles de Lint (Bookshop link)

Wrap Up: I'm Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom by Jason Pargin (Bookshop link)

From Discord:

  • Tassie Dave: "At 20% in there is no indication that this book will ever become Sci-Fi or even Fantasy. I know we had the same worry with Reamde. I will hold out for something SFF-ish to happen later."

  • John Nevets: "I've realized that while I don't think any one character is supposed to 'be the author', the whole story is supposed to convey the points he is trying to make. If one character is closer to that consciousness, it is Ether instead."

  • John Taloni: (Full Spoilers) "I found it hilarious that there was no threat in the box and all the lurid ideas turned out to be completely false. It turns out the dull FBI agent was right all along. There was nothing there."

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show, and if you would like to support the show that way, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #526 - Halfway Happy

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LACon V(eronica) registration is open, the Philip K. Dick Award nominees are out, and we discuss why we're "halfway happy." Plus, we kick off I'm Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom and wrap up The Book That Wouldn't Burn.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

  • Tom: Singapore Noodles

  • Veronica: Olé!

QUICK BURNS

Clyde: There is a John Scalzi in the asteroid belt! He is rightfully chuffed. Link

Tamahome: The title for the sequel to The Strength of the Few was just announced. Hierarchy, Book 3: The Justice of One by James Islington. Link

Mark: More Sci-Fi TV from James S.A. Corey and friends. Prime Video is adapting The Captive's War series. Link

Mark: Registration for LACon V, where the next WorldCon is being held, ends January 31. If you want to nominate and vote for the Hugo Awards, a WSFS Membership is $50 and includes the Voting Packet with many nominated works. Link

Chris K (via Locus): The 2026 Philip K. Dick Award nominees have been announced:

  • Sunward, William Alexander (Saga)

  • Outlaw Planet, M.R. Carey (Orbit UK; Orbit US)

  • Casual, Koji A. Dae (Tenebrous)

  • The Immeasurable Heaven, Caspar Geon (Solaris UK)

  • Uncertain Sons and Other Stories, Thomas Ha (Undertow)

  • Scales, Christopher Hinz (Angry Robot UK)

  • City of All Seasons, Oliver K. Langmead & Aliya Whiteley (Titan) Link

Tamahome: Books entering the public domain on Jan 1st, 2026 include Last and First Men by Olaf Stapledon, Gladiator by Philip Wylie, and the first Tintin graphic novel. Link

JasonB: Cory Doctorow shared a list of 20 public domain books that have been beautifully reformatted by volunteers at Standard Ebooks. Link

trpw: The Guild is being adapted into a musical for MTFestUK 2026, with Felicia Day reprising her role as Cyd/Codex. Link

BARE YOUR SWORD

Stephen expressed skepticism that well-planned plots with twists could be written by "pantsers." Scott replied that Nnedi Okorafor is a pantser who executed the complex structure of Death of the Author largely as it emerged, rather than through heavy revision. Stephen King is another famous pantser with a prolific output.

Paul let Veronica know that Canada has several 4D theaters, including one in Burnaby. He also noted that Amazon Kindle AI likely restricts copying output to prevent academic dishonesty, a major concern in university settings.

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Kick Off

I'm Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom by Jason Pargin. (Bookshop Link)

  • Iain & Judge Ruth: Both noted the book briefing has them curious, though the premise sounds somewhat similar to Pargin's previous work, Futuristic Violence and Fancy Suits.

  • Tassie Dave: Prepared to give the author a second chance despite mixed feelings on past reads.

  • John Nevets: Excited to jump in after enjoying Tom’s previous recommendations.

Wrap Up (Spoilers!)

The Book That Wouldn't Burn by Mark Lawrence. (Bookshop Link)

John Taloni enjoyed the connection to Teela (Livira's aunt) and the "three nickels" riff on the Phineas and Ferb meme.

ScottM praised the dual-perspective approach:

"The novel tackles some of the hardest questions we ever pose to the universe. Who do I hate and why? Who is my enemy? What does it mean to love? And at no point does it offer platitudes or easy answers."

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show! If you would like to support us, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #525 - The Beans That Wouldn't Burn

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It’s all about the beans on this Sword and Laser. Chili, chowder, and more. We also find time to talk about books, specifically Mark Lawrence’s book that wouldn’t burn. But we don’t want to burn the beans either.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

  • Tom: Mushroom Chicken

  • Veronica: German cookies

QUICK BURNS

Tamahome: Lord of the Rings is returning in 4D (shaky chairs). The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and Return of the King will hit the big screen on Jan. 16-18 and Jan. 23-25, 2026. Extended editions will only be available during the first weekend.

hapahappiness: Book Riot just posted their 2026 Read Harder Challenge. I've participated in these challenges for a few years now and am pretty excited to see a square I'll get to check off immediately (aside from the "free square"). 😊

Tamahome: My Kindle iPhone/iPad app just got this "Ask this book" AI feature that lets you ask questions about the book you're reading (with or without spoilers). Authors will love it. (I don't know if it's actually trained on every ebook?). Please make a subthread!

Ziggy: TL;DR: The Denver Nuggets NBA team is hosting a Fourth Wing night on April 8th. Each ticket comes with a special Fourth Wing Nuggets jersey and custom Nuggets x Fourth Wing vellums. The VIP package includes a Wing & Claw book + a custom bookplate signed by @rebeccayarros, a live pre-game Q&A, and a live pre-game podcast with us—Fantasy Fangirls! A portion of each ticket package sold will be given to One October (@oneoctoberorg), which is a cause close to Rebecca's heart.

Mark: I'm not sure what the long-term impact this new Amazon policy may have. It seems like a good thing, but according to other articles, Amazon has also been strengthening DRM in Kindle devices.

Phil: John Varley passed away on Dec. 10th. I've enjoyed several of his books. The Ophiuchi Hotline, Red Thunder, The Barbie Murders, and Titan are all good reads in different ways. Titan is the first of a trilogy. The series is definitely SF but has a fantasy-type setting for part of it. Think Dream Park type of thing. It's been 40 years since I've read it, so don't hold me to details!

BARE YOUR SWORD

John: I am definitely part of the "beans in chili" brigade—usually both haricot and kidney beans. Nom nom. :-)

Stephen: In my wild club days when I was a young university lad, Tom's #1 World Famous Chili Burgers was my late-night meal. I prefer the no-bean chili but I'm not adamant about it.

Paul: I learned something about chili today. I always assumed that chili had beans in it by definition, and without beans, it's basically just a meat sauce. Where is this crazy alternate reality where beans in chili is sacrilege?? I guess I should thank S&L for expanding my horizons yet again. Usually, it's through the cool mind-expanding books, but every now and then, it's the food talk! Actually, come to think of it, finding out that there is root beer-flavored medicine in Europe was another recent mind-expanding moment. Thanks for breaking me out of my cloistered life of only chili with beans and only grape-flavored children's medicine!

SeréTW: I find it really interesting when needlecraft gets mentioned in books, particularly sci-fi. Does anyone have any favorite examples of needlework/art mentioned in sci-fi or fantasy?

crochetchrisie: Sort of SFF, but the Outlander series (especially the first season) has some awesome pieces... I still remember in the first book them using pee. So there's that.

SeréTW: There's a sci-fi book by Scott Meyer called Grand Theft Astro where the main character uses her sweater made from nanofiber as a tool. It's a very creative use of how "under the radar" skills and crafts can be subversive when used in untraditional ways.

tilltab (Judge Ruth): I haven’t read them yet, but these were two books mentioned in the Cut From Whole Cloth panel at the Glasgow Worldcon that I noted down: Torn by Rowena Miller and The Four Profound Weaves by R.B. Lemberg.

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

The Book That Wouldn't Burn by Mark Lawrence (Bookshop.org link)

Stephen: Mark Lawrence also has a blog where he explains the ins and outs of publishing economics. He started the Self-Publishing Fantasy Blog-Off (SPFBO) that just finished its 10th year. Highly successful! All three books in the Library Trilogy are out. Book 2, The Book That Broke the World, took the series to another level. In fact, in April, Mark will have the first in a new series come out, Daughter of Crows.

John Taloni: Seems like this author knows science fiction history pretty well. The title reminded me of Fahrenheit 451, and the library echoes Bradbury's love for them. Overall, the book is giving me a Piranesi feel for the library itself. Also, Teela is an unusual enough name to make me think of Teela Brown from Ringworld. See the full discussion on Discord.

John Taloni: Also, I don't know where the magic school trope "Outsider better than children of stratified classes, deemed failure but picked by iconoclastic powerful professor" came from. But if I had a nickel for every time I saw it in an S&L book, well, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice.

Tamahome: I don't really understand the point of the quotes that begin each chapter. I hear some of them are from the author's previous books. (John has lots of theories, but I don't want to give them away just yet...)

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show! If you would like to support the show, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #524 - 4 Stars: Clean, Not Cozy!

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The Floating Hotel was a great deal, and we really enjoyed it when we checked in. During our stay we met some really interesting folks, and the staff was fabulous. There was some murder, but in the end we were more concerned with the identity of the Lamplighter. And the cocktails were quite delicious. We enjoyed the continental breakfast, because it included so many continents.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?
Tom: White Chili
Veronica: Bailey's on the Rocks

QUICK BURNS
Any news or announcements

Apple Makes ‘Pluribus’ Character’s ‘Bloodsong of Wycaro’ Book Available for Download
Deadline

Tamahome:
The Strength of the Few will become the moviegoers of the few, or the many. (James Islington's best-selling fantasy book series, Hierarchy, has landed at Sony for a feature film adaptation.)
ScreenRant

Dwango:
It's all about the bling bling and Romantasy... Romantic Fantasy leads SFF to its best-ever year. In 2024, NielsenIQ BookData’s Science Fiction & Fantasy (SFF) category secured its biggest year since records began when total sales came in at just under £84m – a massive 41% jump compared with its previous best of just a year earlier, when 2023 bagged £59.4m.
The Bookseller

BARE YOUR SWORD
Feedback from the audience

Ruth:
I’m glad to hear that Tom and I will be able to hang out and discuss our shared love for Casablanca, just before Veronica and I have our fight to the death.

John (Taloni): Touching moment
"We'll always have Worldcon."
Both lift swords
KLANG!!

Tamahome:
Will the fight be streamed?

John:
Thanks for reading out my comment about Robert Jackson Bennett.

My bad for spelling it RJK rather than RJB. I am tripping over my fingers again. :-(

I agree with the sentiment that you expressed – it would be very well deserved if he was more well known.

I am doing my bit – I am planning to recommend The Tainted Cup to the lovely ladies at my local book club – they have a penchant for murder mysteries and first and foremost that is what it is. Slowly but surely, one book at a time, I am converting them to SFF :-D

"I read this book briefing after I finished The Book That Wouldn't Burn by Mark Lawrence, mostly because I'd already started reading it before the briefing was available. But I fully enjoyed not knowing a thing about the book or the author before I started. It was a great discovery experience. Since I finished technically before the month started, I'm going to do a little rereading to detect foreshadowing/clues to outcomes. I've already purchased the sequel.

Seré

Name: Drake Tungsten
Subject: Huh?
Message: Just finished reading Floating Hotel. I don't get it. The overall story of the book never came into focus for me.

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

KickOff
The Book That Wouldn't Burn by Mark Lawrence
Amazon
Bookshop

Final Spoilery Thoughts
Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis
Amazon
Bookshop

Robyn R:
I really liked the first half when it was cozy slice-of-life in space. The second half dropped the book to just an okay 3 star. The rather abrupt change from a Vibes novel to a Plot novel halfway through felt like the author changed their mind in the middle of writing, leaving the book with the feeling of a project scrambled together one minute before the deadline.

Jan:
So what are we nomming in the cocktail bar of a floating hotel "smelling tartly of lime and gin" where servers carry "salt-crusted glasses" and guests get served "oysters, garnished in butter and parsley, with a side of buttered bread" and get to enjoy "chocolate richer than molten gold and almost as hot" with a "bite of cinnamon, a twist of orange"?

Ruth:
I have just finished reading this book and thought I would share a few thoughts here before the end of the month and the wrap-up.

This was a charming book in many ways, with its varied cast of characters and nicely drawn setting. I enjoyed seeing how the different tales of the guests and staff of the Abeona were woven together, with characters disappearing from one story only to pop up again later (view spoiler).

The writing felt deft, with touches of humour (especially with Ooly Mall and his gross eating habits) as well as moments of genuine peril — Mrs. Appleseed was scary! — and pathos.

The way the book was structured did make it feel weirdly slow, and it took me much longer to read than I expected, as it isn't a long book. Skipping from one character and one story to another meant that it didn't really build up much momentum, and the actual ending did feel rushed to me, with the reveal of the Lamplighter's identity leaving me feeling a bit... meh? Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed it, but it definitely felt like I enjoyed each section individually and then found the book as a whole less than the sum of its parts.

The other thing that was slightly "off" about this book was that the space setting felt not just un-science-y (which I don't mind — I'm not a stickler for hard SF rules) but un-space-y. There wasn't much sense of scale and the vastness of the galaxy. In fact, I often found I was slipping into imagining the Abeona as, not so much a modern cruise ship, as some kind of giant luxury steampunk airship traveling around a world that was vaguely reminiscent of the 1930s or 1940s. Then there'd be a reference to stars and the possibility of aliens and I'd be jolted back into the "reality" that this was supposed to be a spaceship.

I guess the Casablanca influence came through in the end with the resistance and the general retro vibes. And all the drinking while someone plays piano.

This wasn't a perfect book by any means, but it was one that charmed me, and I will look out for more by this author.
Goodreads Discussion

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show, and if you would like to support the show that way, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #523 - Ship Happens

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Should the Floating Hotel be called a “space cruise ship”? Why Veronica can't make change. Tom tries not to insult Stephen's intelligence. And hoorah for N. K. Jemisin!

Download directly here!


WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

Tom: Garlic butter shrimp mashed potatoes
Veronica: Protein Latte from Timmy's

QUICK BURNS

Any news or announcements

Paul:
The Goodreads Choice Awards are up, as anyone currently on Goodreads probably already knows. I was going to share the links but that seems pointless.
There's only 1 S&L pick up for an award this year: The Devils by Joe Abercrombie. I guess that means the lists have a lot of potential future S&L picks. I personally haven't read any of the Sci-Fi books, which is a first for me in many years.

I noticed some prominent themes though: The Fantasy section has at least 5 books with an academic setting (the Harry Potter generation is all grown up now, after all) and the sci-fi section has at least 5 books to do with manipulating memories, and if we want to speak more generally about not having control over our minds, then there's even more (maybe because the zeitgeist these days is “Am I losing my mind?”)

Here's the school books:
• Katabasis
• Alchemy of Secrets
• The Incandescent
• The Raven Scholar
• King Sorrow

Memory books:
• Dissolution
• These Memories Do Not Belong to Us
• The Memory Collectors
• The Merge
• The Book of Lost Hours

Additional titles alluding to memory themes:
• The Once and Future Me
• I Think We've Been Here Before
• The Dream Hotel

Goodreads Choice Awards

Seth:
The Science Fiction Writers Association names N. K. Jemisin as their 2025 Grand Master.

Mark notes:
We read The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms as a regular pick and The Fifth Season as an alt pick. The last seven Grand Masters are all women. William Gibson was the last man to receive the award.

N. K. Jemisin — SFWA Grand Master

Mark:
China Miéville has a new book, The Rouse, coming September 2026. Haven't we read it?

Picador unveils China Miéville’s new novel

Matt Dinniman:
New book Operation Bounce House coming February 10, 2026 — and it's not about Carl and Donut!

A man must fight for his planet against impossible odds when gamers from Earth attempt to remotely annihilate it...

Operation Bounce House

Mark:
Fonda Lee discusses her forthcoming novel The Last Contract of Isako, available for pre-order and coming May 5, 2026.

A battle-worn corporate samurai undertakes one last mission on a merciless planet where death is always a mere breath away, in this standalone dystopian epic from the author of Jade City.

TO SERVE IS TO LIVE. TO LIVE IS TO DIE.
I'm all in on this one.

Fonda Lee — Instagram Reel

BARE YOUR SWORD

Feedback from the audience

Tamahome:
The Tainted Cup has the most Goodreads ratings of Robert Jackson Bennett’s books.

Jen:
I just got back from a mini vacation where I started reading The Tainted Cup and I am loving it too. The world is so wonderfully weird and I am loving the dynamic between the two main characters.

John:
RJB is one of my favourite authors — I was introduced to him when this group read City of Stairs and for that I owe you a big thank you.
It is worth noting that The Tainted Cup won the Hugo for Best Novel in 2025 — that is a big ol' dollop of kudos from the community. :-)

Papa MRF:
I am probably in the small minority who squealed when Veronica shouted out Jonathan Coulton, the musician who sings “Tom Cruise Crazy,” but is probably better known for co-hosting the long-running NPR podcast Ask Me Another, where he composed quiz-show questions mostly in the format of musical parodies.

As for his songs, his top 2 most popular are “Re: Brains” and “Code Monkey.”

Tamahome:
Coulton also created the song for Portal in the voice of GLaDOS, “Still Alive.”

Jesse:
Hi,
Wondering if the RSS feed is no longer utilized. I was able to download episode 522 directly but do not see it in my refreshed feed.

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis
Amazon link
Bookshop link

Ruth:
I was interested by Tom's description of the influences on TFH. I am a huge fan of Casablanca, but I'm not really feeling the influence on TFH. I am noticing the influence of Girl, Woman, Other though.
(Explanation of the novel and similarities preserved exactly as written.)

Stephen:
I am 70% in and I get the Casablanca vibe. What I do not get is the concept. Are not Floating Hotels really just Cruise Ships? And that aspect is completely ignored. Maybe the last 30% will save it for me.

SeréTW:
I fully intended to check in mid-read, but this was such a cozy read that before I knew it I was done.
When you're done and you're ready to discuss the book overall, come back here and let's chat.

Questions included:
• Who were your favorite characters?
• Did anything surprise you?
• How do you feel about the ending?
• Do you think there will be a sequel?
• Would you like one?

Discussion thread

John Taloni:
Who else has worked in restaurants? I did for years in high school/college. It was overall a bad experience. This book is giving me flashbacks. Anyone else out there?

Discussion thread

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show — and if you would like to support the show that way, head to
patreon.com/swordandlaser

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at
swordandlaser.com

S&L Podcast - #522 - Punchin' Shrimp and Grits

/

Robert Jackson Bennett deserves more kudos. We clarify it's a tapas bar, not a topless bar. And our thoughts on the new book, Floating Hotel, and the wrap-up of Interview with the Vampire.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

Tom: Shrimp and Grits
Veronica: Orange Gin Sour


QUICK BURNS

Chris K - Via Locus:
2025 British Fantasy Awards Winners

Best Fantasy Novel (the Robert Holdstock Award)
WINNER: Masquerade, O.O. Sangoyomi (Forge)
Long Live Evil, Sarah Rees Brennan (Orbit)
Fathomfolk, Eliza Chan (Orbit)
A Shadow Over Haven, David Green (Eerie River)
The Green Man’s War, Juliet E. McKenna (Wizard’s Tower)

Other winners (and nominees) at the link.

Chris K - Via Reactor:
2025 World Fantasy Awards Winners

Novel
WINNER: The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett (Del Rey/Hodderscape)
The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo (Henry Holt & Co./Quercus)
The Bog Wife by Kay Chronister (Counterpoint Press/Titan Books)
The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman (Viking/Del Rey)
The Wings Upon Her Back by Samantha Mills (Tachyon Publications)

Other winners (and nominees) at the link.

Seth: The Ignyte Awards have been announced, honoring “the vibrancy and diversity of the current and future landscapes of science fiction, fantasy, and horror.”

Lots of interesting winners and finalists, many familiar from S&L picks.

Outstanding novel, adult:
The Sentence – Gautam Bhatia (Westland IF)

Outstanding novel, young adult:
Heir – Sabaa Tahir

Outstanding middle-grade:
The Last Rhee Witch – Jenna Lee-Yun

There are lots of other categories too, including Outstanding Artist, Tran Nguyen, who did cover art I recognize from Sanderson’s Yumi and the Nightmare Painter and Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim.
Link

Aaron Bell: DCC is getting a “graphic novel expansion” centered around Florin DuPont.
Link

Tamahome: Netflix adapting Philip K. Dick’s The World Jones Made in Spanish. It’s called The Future is Ours and will be an 8-episode limited series.
Link

Mark: Mr. Tchaikovsky is adding a volume to the Children of Time series, March 2026...
Children of Strife
“The far future. After Earth fell, ark ships had hunted for a new home. They sought lost worlds terraformed in Earth’s forgotten past. A ship crewed by maverick humans, spiders and a spectacularly punchy mantis shrimp captain is about to rediscover one such world, and an ark.”
Link

And Fredurix notes — Adrian Tchaikovsky is writing lizardfolk in Warhammer Age of Sigmar.
Link

Scott M: The 2025 Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction goes to Rakesfall by Vajra Chandrasekera.
Link

Jason: Brigands and Breadknives by Travis Baldree is out November 11. I love this series.
Link


BARE YOUR SWORD!

Feedback from the audience

This was your reaction to the last episode:

Tamahome: Tapas bar, not topless bar.

John (Taloni): Why not both?

Trike: Because no one wants to see my he-hooters.

Pumpkinstew: Because my patatas are bravas enough, thanks!

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Kick Off
Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis
Amazon link
Bookshop link

WRAP UP

Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice
Amazon link
Bookshop link

Ricardo:
NPR just the other day dropped an episode on reading Interview today, and their takes, I think, run the spectrum of others on here. I for one thoroughly enjoyed my rereading. But now I see it’s because I was also a sad emo goth boy who was probably annoying the hell out of everybody. Also, I thought the zombie vamps were pretty cool.

Scott C:
Really appreciated the opportunity to read this! I have not consumed much vampire content, so this was fun to dive into. It is pretty crazy how the end definitely tees up future books, but then it took YEARS for her to publish more stories.

The one thing I really disliked about the book was Part III and the overall style of it. Such a departure from the rest of the book, and there were not even periodic pauses in “the interview.” I found myself skipping large sections to figure out where the next action took place. I'd have probably Lem’d this one if Part I was same style.

Anyway, overall I was satisfied with how everything tied up and I'll definitely be seeking out the movies and shows based on the book.

Thanks for this pick!
Discord link

SeréTW:
Sigh. Ok, I finished. That was a very, very sad story. So sad that I just had to put it down for a week or two. This took me a pretty long time to get through because it was just one tragedy after another. After a while I was rooting for the sun or fire, or any other means that would bring this misery to an end. And I don't mean just Louis; I wanted ALL those vampires to die. I think I felt this way because all the vampires were different shades of immortal persistent misery, and I don't know, human blood is a hell of a drug. Perhaps that's a bit reflective on my part. In any event, this is probably the wrong time in my life to be able to receive this story well.

That being said, when the reporter demanded to be made a vampire, that made me laugh out loud. What story did he hear that made him say, “sign me up, immediately!” That felt like if teenagers in a Scared Straight program said, “actually, no need to bus me back home, I'd like to stay in maximum security prison. Please, take me directly to the hole, right now.”

I've always wondered about Interview with the Vampire and I'm glad I had the opportunity to read it. I don't think I'm interested in any sequels, at the moment. However, I DO think it could be interesting to see what could happen if Louis got a really good therapist and worked on his relationships. I suppose Therapy with the Vampire is more my speed these days.
Discord link

IwtV: Claudia
Goodreads link


ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show, and if you would like to support the show that way, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

S&L Podcast - #521 - The Portions Are Too Big!

/

We revel in the Lammy Awards, follow the tale of root beer, and discuss our first, or most recent, impressions of Interview with the Vampire.

Download directly here!

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?
Tom: Westward American Single Malt Whisky
Veronica: Jamón Ibérico??

QUICK BURNS
Any news or announcements

Chris K. & Seth: 2025 Lammy Awards were just announced and some finalists and winners are SFF:

Bisexual fiction winner: How to Fall in Love in a Time of Unnameable Disaster // Muriel Leung

Gay fiction finalist: Napalm in the Heart // Pol Guash

Transgender fiction finalists:
All Things Seen and Unseen: A Novel // RJ McDaniel
Yellow Barks Spider // Harman Burns
Trans Femme Futures: Abolitionist Ethics for Transfeminist Worlds // Nat Raha and Mijke van der Drift

And there's a whole category for LGBTQ+ Speculative Fiction:
Finalists:
Bury Your Gays // Chuck Tingle
Markless // C.G. Malburi
The Sunforge // Sascha Stronach
The Palace of Eros // Caro De Robertis

Winner:
Metal From Heaven // August Clarke
Lambda Literary 2025 Lammy Awards

Seth: Baker & Taylor Prepares Plan to Shut Down. Baker and Taylor is the book jobber many US libraries use to get books and many of those libraries are now scrambling to get with another company (there are really only 1–2 viable alternatives) for physical books. They've also been in the library ebook game, so some libraries are facing their entire electronic collection going dark.
Publishers Weekly

Tamahome: Trailer out for The Expanse: Osiris Reborn, an upcoming sci-fi action RPG developed by Owlcat Games. Players will be taken on an original story as a member of Pinkwater Security mercenary at the wrong place at the wrong time.
Watch on YouTube

BARE YOUR SWORD
Feedback from the audience

Jan:
My bare your scone:

I don't get root beer. Do some international shields feel the same? I mean, root beer tastes exactly like the mouthwash you get at the dentist (at least in Germany), so I have a problem associating that taste with something edible or fun...

And on a separate note to native speakers: what's the difference between a cake and a pie? I thought I understood the difference, but then there came cheesecake...

Phil attempts to answer:
A cake is like a big muffin and usually taller than a pie and can be any shape and sometimes has frosting. A pie has a crust and, if it's dessert, usually has a fruit or other sweet filling. A cheesecake usually has a crust on the bottom and the filling can be anywhere from fairly firm to mousse-like, depending on the type. There's also ice-cream cake.

Seth adds on:
After you mercantilist imperials over in England attempted to suck as much money out of the New World as possible, us poor colonists had to resort to getting creative when it came to brewing and borrowed (stole) some native traditions like brewing bark and roots from sassafras, sarsaparilla, and birch trees and drinking it. Sugar and carbonation were added later. The medicinal (but wonderful) taste is sort of a feature since it was often marketed as healthful.

John (Taloni) weighs in:
It's hard to describe if you've never had it. I guess... start with Ginger Ale. Then subtract most of the sweet. Add a sharp taste like tea brewed from bark or a tangy root. It goes well with ice since the slow melt cuts the sharp taste. I'm sure you could find some in the UK if you looked long enough.

Jan does his own research:
A short search seems to suggest that modern root beers use as one flavoring the same stuff that is used in Listerine and medications. And as root beer is not very common outside the US, people there associate the taste with those things, while people in the US know that flavor since childhood from root beer and don't associate the flavor per se with toothpaste, etc.

On the other hand, the tendency to use artificial cherry flavor to cover the taste in medicine in the US means Americans associate that flavor now more with medicine and dislike all the artificially cherry-flavored candy that is common elsewhere.

Stephen adds:
I am so glad A&W is available in Bangkok, Thailand. Root Beer Floats hanging by the condo pool on those incredibly hotter-than-hot summer days... heaven. My local A&W kiosk at my local mall did not survive the COVID shutdown years.

Tassie Dave:
The worst US soda I have tried was Dr. Pepper. I describe the flavor as what I imagine floor polish tastes like. 😜

Paul:
Just FYI, Nalo Hopkinson is Canadian. Just one of many excellent Canadian SFF writers, such as:
Premee Mohamed
Xiran Jay Zhao
Guy Gavriel Kay
Silvia Moreno-Garcia
William Gibson (moved here in the 60s)
Amal El-Mohtar
Fonda Lee

And many more, of course. And I know nobody asked for this list, but one of the most Canadian things a person can do is interrupt a conversation to point out that someone is Canadian. So when you were debating whether Nalo Hopkinson was Canadian or if it was like the British Fantasy Awards, my Canadar was going crazy and I wanted to yell into my podcast feed, “YES SHE'S CANADIAN!”

Stephen:
Personally, I loved The Hexologists. It has so many nice touches. The crumpet? Warren is an amateur baker. If you know one as such, you know they will gift you cookies, brownies, and all sorts of baked goods because that is what they do. Also, I used the dictionary function of my Kindle version of the tale multiple times. Always nice to expand one's VOCABULARY.

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Interview With The Vampire by Anne Rice
Amazon Link
Bookshop Link

crochetchrisie📚:
Well, 95 pages at the break that's not really a break, and I think my teenage self was enamored with poor tortured Louis.

Adult me thinks omg get over it, Louis. Put on your big boy vampire pants and suck it up.

But no, the man who became a vampire after being so depressed that he wanted to die did not magically become happy.

“He couldn't bear it.”

Dude, choose better, Lestat.

And I get it, the book was the author working through her grief and I can appreciate that.

But I just want to slap Louis almost every single page. And I would love to actually remember how my teenage self felt about him.
Discord Discussion

Iain Bertram:
Reading this for the first time since the eighties, I am struck at the volume of killings that occur in this book. Each vampire is killing at least one person per night and often more. This leads to about 500 per vampire per year which, in 100 years, is a huge number. (3 vampires leads to about 150k deaths).

This is just monstrous.

I couldn’t work out how no one noticed the killing until I looked up mortality rates in New Orleans. In some years, nearly half the people who moved there died from Yellow Fever. Plagues with thousands of deaths. I still think 1500 corpses with teeth marks on the neck should have been a bit of a giveaway.

If I am being generous, the book might be an illustration of the banality of evil as Lestat, Louis, and Claudia are three of the most mediocre characters to be protagonists in a book. Dull, boring people with no redeeming features. The rich supping on the poor for their prosperity. Given the flowery language, it is a stretch though.
Discord Discussion

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show, and if you would like to support the show that way, head to patreon.com/swordandlaser.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.

feedback@swordandlaser.com
swordandlaser.com
We are on Instagram, X, and Mastodon @swordandlaser
goodreads.com

S&L Podcast - #520 - Alternate Batman

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Tom reports from the Matt Dinniman book event in LA, we kick off our Interview with the Vampire read, and share our last spoilery thoughts on The Hexologists and why we think the writing doorway is the strongest one for this book.

Download directly here!


WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

Tom: Chicken McNuggets
Veronica: Apple cake


QUICK BURNS — add time stamp!

Any news or announcements

Tamahome: A full-scale National Novel Writing Month 2025 event will be hosted this November on FicFan. Please welcome NewNoWriMo 2025!

trpw: Jill Bearup, author of the meta-fantasy Just Stab Me Now (based on her YouTube shorts), has started a new series of shorts based on a Sci-Fi heroine. Watch here.

Jan: From Locus Mag: 2025 Sunburst Award
Nalo Hopkinson has won this year’s Sunburst Award for Excellence in Canadian Literature of the Fantastic for her novel Blackheart Man.

From Goodreads:
Veycosi, a scholar of folklore, is put in charge of the situation when conquerors appear on the magical island of Cynchin to force a trade agreement, but quickly finds himself in way over his head.

Bad turns to worse when malign forces start stirring. Pickens (children) are disappearing, and an ancient invading army, long frozen into piche (tar) statues by island witches, is stirring to life—led by the fearsome demon known as the Blackheart Man.

Read more at Locus Mag.

Trike: Crowdfunding for the graphic novel expansion of Dungeon Crawler Carl begins October 1st on Backerkit.

Written by Matt Dinniman and Michael Moreci (for V: pronounced like “Morrissey”), it’s canon.

The Dungeon Crawler Carl Universe is expanding!

Direct from the spectacular minds of series creator Matt Dinniman, writer Michael Moreci, and artist Brett Bean comes an explosive, brand-new, and 100% canon expansion to the DCC universe!

Featuring a fistful of your favorite characters (and some brand-new friends, enemies, and exceptionally concerning weapons), you’ll see the opening of the World Dungeon like you’ve never seen it before—from a new character’s perspective.

Support on Backerkit.

From the Monday conversation with Felicia and Matt Dinniman:

  • His Excel sheet is 208 pages long and has a second sheet to keep track of what’s in that one

  • Book 8: two floors. Book 9: one floor. The rest in Book 10

  • Book 8 is Mario Kart-ish

  • Book 9 is violent Stardew Valley with gods

  • Matt used to write Transformers and GI Joe fan fiction as a kid

  • He has a map of the Iron Tangle he made in the HTC Vive

I have a signed copy of Book 7 to give away that comes with a DCC bookmark and Princess Donut temporary tattoo. They encouraged us to do very short inscriptions, so I chose:
“New Achievement for Sword and Laser.”


BARE YOUR SWORD

Feedback from the audience

Ruth: On the question of books featuring married couples with healthy sex lives, I thought of the central couple from previous S&L pick The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal, who regularly have “rocket launches.” 🚀

Tamahome:
I hope they didn’t have too many “Apollo 13” mishaps.

Trike:
“We got a wicked shimmy!”


BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Kick Off
Interview With The Vampire by Anne Rice — Amazon link | Bookshop link

Wrap Up!
Hexologists by Josiah Bancroft — Amazon link | Bookshop link

trpw:
In the novel, there is a “Crumpet” paragraph, where we are told that our lead male character presents his mother-in-law with a single crumpet, wrapped up with a nice bow.

  • Crumpets have a flat top with many small cylindrical holes and a spongy texture.

  • They are made from a batter (not a dough) and cooked on a griddle like a thick pancake.

  • They are not eaten right after cooking but are generally toasted to crisp and/or brown the flat surfaces.

  • While still hot, their top surfaces are generally spread with butter, which melts into the holes.

  • They should be eaten while still warm.

Learn more about crumpets.

The presented crumpet can’t be a toasted or buttered crumpet (too messy and not likely still warm). Also, my local cheap supermarket sells crumpets in packs of 4 for about 20 pence each (about a dollar for the pack of 4).

If you want an approximate US equivalent, it is like presenting someone with an unadorned, unfilled bagel, wrapped up with a nice bow. Not a particularly good gift for a mother-in-law.

This might have taken you a while to read; it is about as long as the “Crumpet” paragraph took me out of the story. Discussion link.

On “Alternate Batman”
So this drove me crazy. Apologies for the tl;dr.

A batman is a personal military servant to a military officer. Usually, they are a Private or Non-Commissioned Officer serving a senior officer, usually at or above the rank of Captain. The military here would usually be Army.

  • Lance-Corporal is the most junior Non-Commissioned Officer rank in the British Army (not sure of other armies). It is one step above a Private.

  • You do not pass successfully out of a Military Academy with a Non-Commissioned Officer’s Rank, especially one only one step above Private. The whole point of Military Academies is to produce Commissioned Officers, NOT Non-Commissioned ones.

  • A Batman’s job is very menial—preparing food, baths, and cleaning (lots of cleaning). It is a demeaning job, not meant for an Aristocrat.

I think the word(s) the author was looking for were either Equerry or Aide-de-Camp (ADC). That role is more like a personal assistant to a high-ranking (or royal) officer. It is not menial, works as a companion to a Prince or King, is done by a Commissioned Officer, and is more suitable for someone of Aristocratic (possibly minor royal) rank.
Discussion link.

Ricardo:
Just wanted to post some quotes that I found delightful.

“Isolde went on to explain, in explicit detail, that the marital act stimulated the mind and carried in its ecstasies epiphanies that cannot be summoned in the library or the laboratory. Sex helped her think. Their intimacies had a very different effect on Warren. He found their pairing to be akin to an emotional exorcism, as all the tangled and unsettled feelings, anxieties, and dread that had gathered in him during the course of the day were all at once blown to the ether, as undiluted serenity rushed in to fill the void..”

A very insightful (and mature) take on how a couple views sex.

“You remind me why echoes make the best houseguests: they only answer, never ask.”

“Fortunes are mostly made thanks to a surfeit of luck and a paucity of morals. Tenacity, talent, and principles are all common enough; it’s avarice that’s scarce.””

And I’m a sucker for mortals talking to eternal beings on the meaning of life:

“Is it satisfying, knowing all the secrets of the world? Is it enough? Are you content, or does the ever-swelling bubble of reality make fulfillment impossible? ... Do we need mysteries to survive?”
Discussion link.

Bill:
I raced to finish the last half, so I obviously enjoyed it. Oddly enough, I’m fixated on what I didn’t like.

  • The pacing feels off. The last 10% races through tying everything up.

  • Bancroft’s use of language is notable—lots of “dollar words.” (I kind of like this 🤭)

  • I love Iz being hyper-focused, blunt, unpleasant, but also loving with War. Their relationship is a highlight.

  • The magic system is different enough to be interesting.

  • And the sequel comes out next week!
    Discussion link.

Seth:
I started pretty late this month, but finally wound things up. It was perfectly pleasant to read, but not much more.

  • Setting: Fine, but very British. Maybe it should just have been British? A secondary world is fine, but I wondered if real-world historical weirdness would have been more effective.

  • Characters: Both main characters were great, if not terribly deep. Quippy and quick-witted, but very modern in their outlook.

  • Plot: With so few characters, by the end you know everyone must be involved—there’s basically a plot twist for each of them.
    Goodreads discussion.

ADDENDUMS

Our show is currently entirely funded by our patrons. Thank you to all the folks who back our show—and if you would like to support the show, head to Patreon.

You can also support the show by buying books through our links! Find links to the books we talk about and some of our favorites at swordandlaser.com.